TOKYO (AP) — Okinawa marked the 77th anniversary Thursday of the end of one of the bloodiest battles of World War II, with the governor calling for a further reduction of the U.S. military presence there as local fears grow that the southern Japanese islands will become embroiled in regional military tension.
TOKYO (AP) — Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said Tuesday that talks with China's leader are key to regional and international peace and stability amid growing tensions over territorial disputes and Beijing's increased military activity around Japan.
TOKYO (AP) — Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida did not look like he'd last long when he took office eight months ago.
He was seen as nice, but indecisive and subservient to party heavyweights.
TOKYO (AP) — Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida announced plans Wednesday to establish an infectious disease crisis management agency to better prepare for future pandemics.
SINGAPORE (AP) — Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida announced plans on Friday to boost his country's diplomatic and security role in the Asia Pacific to tackle what he described as growing threats in the region amid Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
TOKYO (AP) — Japanese and NATO officials agreed Tuesday to step up military cooperation and joint exercises as they shared concerns that Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is causing a deterioration of the security environment in Europe and Asia.
TOKYO (AP) — Japan’s parliament enacted a 2.7 trillion yen ($21 billion) extra budget on Tuesday to tackle soaring fuel and food prices following Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
The extra budget is for the current fiscal year that started April 1 and will fund part of a 6.2 trillion yen ($48 billion) emergency economic package that Prime Minister Fumio Kishida’s government adopted in late April, which includes subsidies to oil wholesalers to minimize the impact on consumers.
TOKYO (AP) — Japan will open its borders to foreign tourists in June for the first time since imposing tight pandemic travel restrictions about two years ago, but only for package tours for now, the prime minister said Thursday.
TOKYO (AP) — Thai Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha said Thursday that a new U.S.-backed economic pact is further proof of how important and relevant Asia is today.
“Asia is still expanding and gaining more influence in terms of strategic and economic importance,” Prayuth said.
TOKYO (AP) — President Joe Biden launched a new trade deal with 12 Indo-Pacific nations Monday aimed at strengthening their economies as he warned Americans worried about high inflation that it is "going to be a haul” before they feel relief.
TOKYO (AP) — President Joe Biden on Monday is expected to come out with a list of nations that will join a long-anticipated Indo-Pacific trade pact, but Taiwan won't be among them.
White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan confirmed that Taiwan isn't among the governments signed up for the launch of the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework, a pact that's meant to allow the U.S.
CANBERRA, Australia (AP) — Australia’s center-left opposition party toppled the conservative government after almost a decade in power, and Prime Minister-elect Anthony Albanese in his Saturday election victory speech promised sharper reductions in greenhouse gas emissions while he faces an early foreign policy test.
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden embarked Thursday on a six-day trip to South Korea and Japan aiming to build rapport with the two nations’ leaders while also sending an unmistakable message to China: Russia’s faltering invasion of Ukraine should give Beijing pause about its own saber-rattling in the Pacific.
BEIJING (AP) — Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi criticized on Wednesday what he called negative moves by Washington and Tokyo against Beijing ahead of a meeting in Tokyo next week of the leaders of the U.S., Japan, Australia and India.
TOKYO (AP) — Japan and the European Union on Thursday agreed to step up their sanctions against Russia as leaders from the two sides raised concerns about the war’s impact in the Indo-Pacific, where they seek to strengthen their partnership and increase engagement amid China's growing assertiveness.
TOKYO (AP) — Finnish Prime Minister Sanna Marin said the possibility of her country joining NATO was for the security of its citizens and called for the international community to unite in stepping up sanctions against Russia during talks Wednesday in Japan.
TOKYO (AP) — Japan's capital has announced it will start recognizing same-sex partnerships to ease the burdens faced by residents in their daily lives, but the unions will not be considered legal marriages.
TOKYO (AP) — Japan announced Friday that its foreign minister will attend new South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol's inauguration ceremony next week as part of an effort to bring the countries' strained relations back to normal.
LONDON (AP) — The militaries of Britain and Japan will “work more closely together” under a defense deal that British Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced during talks with his Japanese counterpart Thursday.
ROME (AP) — Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and Pope Francis vowed to work together to try to rid the world of nuclear weapons, the Vatican and Japanese officials said Wednesday as new nuclear threats worried Asia and Europe.
BANGKOK (AP) — Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida met Monday with his Thai counterpart, Prayuth Chan-ocha, for talks about economic, security and geopolitical issues, including political upheaval in Myanmar and Russia’s war in Ukraine.
HANOI, Vietnam (AP) — Japan's Prime Minister Fumio Kishida discussed the war in Ukraine with Vietnamese leaders on Sunday and said they agreed on the respect for international law and rejection of the use of force.
JAKARTA, Indonesia (AP) — Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and Indonesian President Joko Widodo urged a rapid halt to fighting in Ukraine on Friday and said they will work together to improve humanitarian conditions there.
TOKYO (AP) — German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said in Tokyo on Thursday that his country wants to strengthen ties with countries in the Indo-Pacific region that share the same values, and work together to end Russia's aggression in Ukraine.
TOKYO (AP) — Asian shares retreated on Wednesday, echoing a broad decline on Wall Street and driven by worries about how the war in Ukraine may push prices for oil and other commodities higher.
Tokyo's benchmark rose after Prime Minister Fumio Kishida announced measures to help poor families and small businesses as the nation copes with rising prices and a weakening currency.
TOKYO (AP) — Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida indicated his willingness Tuesday to mend badly strained ties with South Korea, saying relations between the two U.S. allies are crucial when the rules-based international order is threatened by Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
TOKYO — Japan welcomed the reelection of French President Emmanuel Macron as key to the unity of Group of Seven at a time when its members need to work together to end Russia’s invasion of Ukraine as soon as possible.
TOKYO (AP) — New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern and her Japanese counterpart, Fumio Kishida, agreed on Thursday to strengthen the partnership in defense, trade and climate between their nations, including the beginning of formal talks toward a military information sharing agreement.
TOKYO (AP) — Japan enacted a law on Wednesday formally revoking Russia's “most favored nation” trade status over its invasion of Ukraine, as Tokyo steps up sanctions amid revelations of Russian military atrocities against civilians.
TOKYO (AP) — Swiss President Ignazio Cassis said Monday his country has joined the international community in implementing tough sanctions against Russia over its invasion of Ukraine, but that does not mean it has abandoned its traditional neutrality.
TOKYO (AP) — Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and visiting U.S. lawmakers reaffirmed their commitment to working together under a longstanding bilateral alliance on Saturday at a time of heightened global tensions including threats from China and North Korea.
TOKYO (AP) — Japan announced Friday it is expelling eight Russian diplomats and trade officials and will phase out imports of Russian coal and oil, with Prime Minister Fumio Kishida saying Moscow must be held accountable for “war crimes” in Ukraine.
TOKYO (AP) — Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida escorted the U.S. ambassador to his hometown Hiroshima on Saturday to pay respects to atomic bombing victims and warned that the world is again facing threats of nuclear attacks stemming from Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
PHNOM PENH, Cambodia (AP) — Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida visited Cambodia for talks with the country's longtime leader, Hun Sen, on Sunday to deepen relations and promote calls for the rule of law in one of the Southeast Asia's closest partners of both China and Japan.
NEW DELHI (AP) — Japan’s Prime Minister Fumio Kishida on Saturday said his country will invest $42 billion in India over the next five years in a deal that is expected to boost bilateral trade.
Kishida met his counterpart, Narendra Modi, in New Delhi during his maiden visit to India since assuming office.
NEW DELHI (AP) — Japan's Prime Minister Fumio Kishida will meet with his Indian counterpart, Narendra Modi, to strengthen their partnership in the Indo-Pacific and beyond in view of China’s growing footprint in the region, an Indian official said Thursday.
TOKYO (AP) — Japan’s Prime Minister Fumio Kishida on Wednesday announced plans to fully lift coronavirus restrictions on March 21 as new infections driven by the highly contagious omicron variant slow.
TOKYO (AP) — Japan's Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and South Korea's president-elect Yoon Suk Yeol talked on the phone Friday, agreeing to cooperate toward improving their countries' ties, while signaling a thaw in icy relations strained by wartime history disputes.
TOKYO (AP) — Japan on Friday paid tribute to the victims and renewed searches for those still missing from a massive earthquake and tsunami 11 years ago that also triggered a nuclear disaster in Fukushima where tens of thousands still cannot return home.
TOKYO (AP) — Japan's government on Thursday welcomed the election of a new president in South Korea who supports stronger ties with Washington and Tokyo, as officials and experts expressed hope for an improvement in badly strained relations.
NEW DELHI (AP) — President Joe Biden and the prime ministers of India, Australia and Japan will talk Thursday in a virtual meeting of the Indo-Pacific alliance known as the Quad that comes a week into the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
TOKYO (AP) — Japan announced Thursday it will ease its tough COVID-19 border controls by increasing the number of people allowed to enter each day and reducing quarantine requirements following criticism that its current policy is unscientific and xenophobic.
TOKYO (AP) — Japan is considering easing its stringent border controls amid growing criticism that the measures, which have banned most foreign entrants including students and business travelers, are hurting the country's economy and international profile.
TOKYO (AP) — Japan has granted fast-track approval to U.S. drug maker Pfizer Inc.’s COVID-19 pill, the heath minister said Thursday, as the country struggles to slow fast-spreading omicron infections.
TOKYO (AP) — Prime Minister Fumio Kishida on Wednesday announced plans to keep COVID-19 restrictions for Tokyo and 12 other areas for three more weeks until early March, as omicron infections show little signs of slowing and most Japanese still lack booster shots.
TOKYO (AP) — Japan's prime minister on Monday pledged to double the number of COVID-19 booster shots being delivered on a daily basis across the country, as his government faces criticism for a delayed rollout of vaccines.
TOKYO (AP) — The new U.S. ambassador to Japan, Rahm Emanuel, pledged to work “wholeheartedly” to deepen Washington's alliance with Tokyo as he met with Prime Minister Fumio Kishida on Friday.
The two discussed China's increasingly assertive military actions and North Korea's escalating missile tests, among other regional concerns, and agreed to closely cooperate, the Foreign Ministry said in a statement,
TOKYO (AP) — Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said Friday that Japan will recommend a former gold mine on Sado Island for a UNESCO World Heritage list, despite protests from South Korea that the site is inappropriate because of its wartime abuse of Korean laborers — a sensitive issue that still strains ties between the neighbors.